THERE ARE A
FEW GRAPHICS IN THE BEGINNING OF THIS PAGE. PLEASE ALLOW
THE PAGE TO LOAD. WHEN ALL 3 FLAGS ARE WAVING IT WILL BE O
K

1944-28th INF DIV MARCHES IN PARIS

"Roll
On" has long been the slogan of Pennsylvania's "Keystone
Division," but for a time in December, 1944, it looked as
if "Hold On" would be more appropriate. At that time, the
28th, with five months of fighting in France, Belgium,
Luxembourg and Germany already behind it, was deployed
along a 25-mile stretch of the Our River, from
northeastern Luxembourg to Wallenstein, Germany. And at
that time, Von Rundstedt launched the full fury of his
counter-offensive against the 28th Division lines. On the
first day, five crack German divisions flung themselves
over the Our River, and within a few days, the 28th was
single-handedly fighting no less than nine enemy
divisions. It held on, and one correspondent in the area
called its stand. "one of the greatest feats in the
history of the American Army."

Indeed, it was! No
other division in U.S. history has ever been attacked by
so many enemy divisions at one time. And its defence
completely upset the German timetable in the famous
"Battle of the Bulge".

30 years later - this epic
stand of the Keystone Division was immortalized in the new
"Battle of the Bulge" Museum in Bastogne, Belgium which
was dedicated on May 22nd,1974. This is a magnificent
structure which will stand perpetually as a testimonial to
American Forces which fought in this largest of all
battles in U.S. history. The 28th is among the Divisions
feted. This was a rare moment in history for seldom do
people who helped create a legend have the chance to see
themselves honored in a manner which will assure
recognition of their deeds for generations to
come.

("Soldiers of the West Front, your great
hour has struck. Everything is at stake!" - Von
Rundstedt-15 December 1944)

In 1940 the Ardennes
had been the weak link in the French chain. Now the
Monschau-Echternach sector was the weakest part of
Eisenhower's front. Lt. General Courtney H. Hodges (First
Army) was holding 85 miles with only five divisions and
three of them (2nd, 4th, and 28th) had suffered heavily in
the recent fighting round Aachen. Only about 100 miles to
the NW. was Antwerp, the great Allied supply base, which
had recently been opened to seaborne traffic. The German
commanders knew the narrow roads of the Ardennes with
their hairpin bends and steep hillsides very well. They
had come that way in 1940. Bad weather could be expected
to nullify the Allied air superiority.

When the attack came the S.S.
General Sepp Dietrich with the Sixth S.S. Panzer Army fell
upon the U.S. V Corps (Major-General Leonard T. Gerow) and
thrust toward Liege. The Americans were driven back to the
Elsenborn Ridge, but in three days desperate fighting they
denied the enemy the direct road to Liege, the main
communication centre of Bradley's Twelfth Army Group. A
German armoured column did suceed in thrusting forward
through Malmedy, Stavelot, and Stonmont, but as luck would
have It narrowly missed not only the Allies main fuel dump
but Bodges H.Q. at Spa. By 19 December it had been brought
to a halt.

Fifth Panzer Army, though weaker than
Sixth made much more progress. Von Manteuffel achieved
tactical surprise by attacking without a preliminary
bombardment, relying on close cooperation between his
armour and his infantry. His onslaught shatered the U.S.
VIII Corps (Major-General Troy H. Middleton), which was
strung out upon a long front. On Manteuffel's right a
corps cut off two regiments of the inexperienced U.S.
106th Division in the Schnee Eifel. On his left two panzer
corps broke through the U.S.28th Division, and reached the
outskirts of Houffalize and Bastogne.

(The 112th
plugged the line for two days before pulling north to join
the one regiment left of the 106th Inf. Div. as a combat
team. The 112th C.T. was from the 28th Inf.
Div.)

Seventh Army (General Erich BrandenberFer)
was supposed to cover Manteuffel's left flank by thrusting
forward towards the Meuse. It made some progress at first,
especially on the right, but after a few days was held up
by the U.S. 4th Infantry Division and elements of the 9th
Armoured Division.

The 7th Armoured Division denied
St. Vith to the enemy until 21 December. Part of the 10th
Armoured Division delayed von Manteuffel just long enough
to allow 101st Airborne Division to establish itself in
Bastogne.

The Germans
had not quite shot their bolt. Sixth Panzer Army got going
again and Manteuffel's two Panzer Corps drove on westward.
And on Christmas eve his 2nd Panzer was in sight of the
Meuse, near Celles.

109th
INF REGT-BATTLE OF THE BULGE

On
Dec.16,1944 all Hell broke loose in the Ardennes. Enemy
artillery and mortars ripped into the division's 25 mile
line. Fanatic Wehrmacht elements threw themselves at the
28th immediately after barrages. Nazis attempted to throw
back the Allies in a tremendous counter-thrust. In the
path of the German fury was the 28th Inf. Div. 28th
Division Held Ardennes.

Five crack enemy divisions
- Panzer, Infantry, Volksgrenadier - hurled across the Our
River the first day of the assault. Second Bn.,109th; 1st
and 3rd Bns.,11Oth; 1st Bn.,112th, rocked most severely
under the first blows, lashed back to ward off attacks,
caused many enemy casualties. But Germans struck again and
again. Enemy reserves from the east threw their weight
behind the steamrolling push. Germans pounded American
lines continuously. Enemy tanks rolled up in support of
Nazi infantry.

The day wore on. Division lines
snapped under excessive pressure. Units were isolated,
surrounded. Co. B, 110th, was encircled, lost contact with
battalion. Men fought and died in their places. Co.I,
110th, pinned down at Weiler, hacked its way out of
encirclement at night, joined its battalion in
Clervaux.

Clervaux had been the division rest area
for a month. Now it was a roaring battlefield as resting
men scrambled to form hasty defenses.

Nine enemy
divisions were identified in the striking force that kept
hammering 28th troopers. Keystone men were outnumbered,
overrun, cut off. But they refused to panic. The 28th
fought, delayed, and fought.

The 112th plugged the
line for two days before pulling north to join the 106th
Inf. Div. as a combat team. Route of the regiment from the
time it lost contact with the 28th was a path from
Luxembourg to Belgium: Weiswampach, Huldange, Beiler,
Rogery, Veilsam, Mormont.

For three days the 109th
held fast, then set up positions on a hill northeast of
Diekirch. Next day, it moved to screen the left flank of
the 9th Armored Div. to which it later was attached.
Christmas Eve brought not good cheer to Nazis but another
attack. The regiment shifted its lines to the high ground
between Ettelbruck and Mostroff. Two days later, it
rejoined the 28th at Naufchateau.

The 229th F.A.
part of the 112th combat team, during the Ardennes
breakthrough often had to leave their big guns, pick up
rifles, and work alongside the infantrymen in close-in
fighting. When the batteries were forced to withdraw, it
was noted the crews would pull them a little farther. They
did not want the Nazis to know that they were displacing
the howitizers, They moved at night by the truck drivers
following a white handkerchief
and the roar of the enemy tanks drowning out the sound of
the trucks.

Meantiine, the 110th was weathering
staggering blows. Wiltz was the division CP location since
mid-November. The town was a vital transportation hub. It
was also one of the first objectives of the German
breakthrough.

The 110th, near Wiltz, suffered
severe attacks all along its front. But the battered
regiment was not alone in its defense. Division troops
pitched in; MPs, postal and finance clerks, QM and
Division Hq. personnel, band men formed a provisional
defense battalion to block the German blow.

The 28th held Ardennes From Dec. 16 to Christmas Day. It
was everybody's fight. Outstanding acts of bravery became
routine. Morley
Cassidy, war correspondent in a nation-wide broadcast to
America, said: "The 28th Division has performed one of the
greatest fetes in the history of the American Army.
Against nine divisions it has held so firmly that the
German timetable has been thrown off completely."

According to Nazi plan, Bastogne was to have been gained
on the second day, not reached until the third, and not
by-passed until the sixth day.

The German
breakthrough had struck at the 28th in all its violence.
The division had reeled under its impact, suffered the
crush but warded off disastrous defeat. Keystone men
pulled back to an area where they could recover from the
shock, where they could prepare to avenge and slash
back at the enemy.

Early 1945 was spent near
Charleville where the 28th - less the 112th Combat Team -
defended the Meuse River from Givet to Verdun. Troops
manned outposts at road
junctions and bridges in key cities: Sedan, Verdun,
Rocroi, Charleville, Stenay, and Buzancy.

The 112th Combat Team returned to the division Jan. 13
after almost four weeks of continuous contact with the
enemy in the Ardennes area "somewhere in Belgium." Four
days later, the division moved southeast to Sixth Army
Group's sector.

The
same Keystone Division that the German radio had declared
"wiped out" now was ready again. In September, 1944, a
Division slogan contest netted the following motto-. "28th
Roll On." Hard hit in the Hurtgen Forest, harder hit
In the Ardennes breakthrough, Keystone men still
personified their
division slogan. The 28th was to smash through the enemy
once more, was to continue to live up to its slogan and
Roll On!

Success of the division is the result of
every man in every unit, organic or attached.

The
107th F.A.,108th F.A.,109th F.A.,and the 229th F.A.all
contributed to the terror of the Germans. The 103rd Combat
Engineers, kept the division rollin . Engineers built
bridges and roads, handled mines, destroyed pillboxes and
fought as infantry. Their missions: all
accomplished.

Forward or rear, the 103rd Medics -
medical aid men on the line, technicians at aid stations -
conquered in another kind of battle. Keystone men never
suffered from lack of proper medical attention.

The 630th TD Bn. fought continuously with front
line Joes. The 447th AAA Bn., one of the first ack-ack
units to hit France, D plus 1, the 707th Tank Bn.,
contributed many pages to the 28th division
story.

In World War 1, General Pershing referred to
the 28th as the "Iron Division;' in World War 2, the
Germans called the 28th.the "Bloody Bucket
Division."